Low Operating Expenses

The recommended footprint for a cityscapes office ranges from 1,200 sq. ft to 1,800 sq. ft. and yet can sustain 20 to 30 agents comfortably once the concept is understood that the office is a docking station and not a place to rent office space or cubicles. It is recommended that each office has basically six rooms, beginning with a foyer/reception area, a conference room, a brokers office, a room for the office manager, and a room for a workstation which will accommodate between 2-4 computers. The sixth and final room can be utilized by the Brokers personal assistant or perhaps an in-house mortgage or title company. The model is small and efficient, as well as being effective. Depending on the location, the lease or rent on 1200 to 1800 sq. ft. should be a reasonable and manageable monthly overhead. In addition to the monthly carry, the office can run very efficiently with one office manager who oversees the daily operations, enrolls and assists agents and manages the books and bill paying. The archaic model of housing agents is falling by the wayside. Historically, real estate models try to provide space, desks and computers for agents, their overhead is inherently high and when there is a shift in the market, they lose agents and revenue and the owners are forced to carry the monthly financial burden.

We have witnessed a number of larger firms forced to consolidate or literally close their doors because the overhead of a larger square foot operation is sinking them. The Titanic was a large and beautiful ship, but the survivors were in the life boats. Another advantage to maintaining low over head is that you have the ability to be selective with the agents you bring on board. This model does not need twenty or thirty agents to cover your monthly lease, realistically four or five agents will do so with moderate production. You can withdraw from the mode of recruit, recruit, recruit, which once again is a necessary element of the larger, less maneuverable companies. In this day of technology, do agents really need to work out of an office, pay excessive monthly dues and sit at a desk all day long? The trend in real estate is mobility.........we live in an electronic age and business is done from the home or on the road and out and about in our daily routine.......our business is networking and meeting people, not sitting at a desk all day.